Scottish Executive

Agriculture

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether cheap raspberry pulp will continue to be produced for use by mass catering outlets following the liquidation of Scottish Soft Fruit Growers.

Ross Finnie: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-16899 on 16 August 2001.

Agriculture

Alex Johnstone (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-16697 by Ross Finnie on 9 August 2001, whether it will work with Her Majesty’s Government to ensure that the test that is used in the UK to examine compound animal feedstuffs for the presence of mammalian protein is validated to the satisfaction of EU requirements as soon as possible.

Ross Finnie: The Executive is working with the UK Government to ensure that this important task is completed at the earliest possible opportunity.

Cancer

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many oncologists are employed in each health board area and what the ratio of these to population is in each area.

Susan Deacon: Cancer services in Scotland are delivered by clinicians working within managed clinical networks. The number of oncologists employed in any health board area and the ratio of these to population is therefore not an indicator of the level of patient access to these highly specialised services.

  The following table provides information on consultant oncologists employed within the areas covered by the three Regional Network Groups. The table should be read in conjunction with the notes.

  Consultant Medical and Clinical Oncologists: as at 30 September 2000P

  Headcount and Rate per 100,000 Population, by Regional Network Group

  


 


Headcount 
  

per 100,000 Population 
  



 


Total 
  

Medical Oncologists 
  

Clinical Oncologists 
  

Medical Oncologists 
  

Clinical Oncologists 
  



Scotland 
  

52 
  

14 
  

38 
  

0.3 
  

0.7 
  



North2


14 
  

4 
  

10 
  

0.3 
  

0.8 
  



West3


22 
  

5 
  

17 
  

0.2 
  

0.7 
  



South East4


16 
  

5 
  

11 
  

0.4 
  

0.8 
  



  Notes:

  1. Source: Staff - Medical and Dental Census from payroll, ISD Scotland; Mid-Year Population Estimates at 30 June - Registrar General for Scotland.

  2. The North of Scotland Regional Network Group covers the following health board areas: Grampian, Highland, Orkney, Shetland, Tayside and Western Isles.

  3. The West of Scotland Regional Network Group covers the following health board areas: Argyll & Clyde, Ayrshire & Arran, Forth Valley, Greater Glasgow and Lanarkshire.

  4. The South East Scotland Regional Network Group covers the following health board areas: Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Fife and Lothian.

  5. The staffing data shown is provisional and is the value on 30 September 2000. This may not necessarily represent average staffing levels throughout the year.

Charity Law

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the timescale is for consultation on the Scottish Charity Law Review Commission report Charity Scotland through to its response to the Commission.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Executive has invited public comment on the Scottish Charity Law Review Commission’s recommendations. The consultation period ends on 30 September. The Executive will consider the comments received before preparing a full response to the report. In doing so it will also take account of the wider strategic review of the social economy, which is currently under way.

  It is anticipated that the Executive’s response will be published early in 2002.

Children

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken, or plans to take, in the light of the report by the Aberlour Child Care Trust, the University of York, Extern, Children’s Promise and The Children’s Society, Missing Out – Young Runaways in Scotland .

Nicol Stephen: In addition to the information which I gave in my answer to question S1W-15504 in May 2001, I am pleased to announce that we recently awarded funding of just under £100,000 over three years to Aberlour Child Care Trust’s project "Running - Other Choices". This pilot project in Glasgow will assist young people to find solutions to the circumstances which have caused them to run away from home and to find alternatives to running.

Community Care

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive when the report of the Care Development Group will be published and, if this differs from the originally planned date, what the original date was.

Malcolm Chisholm: In accordance with the terms of its remit, the Care Development Group will report to the Minister for Health and Community Care by the end of August. The Scottish Executive will arrange for the report to be published.

Education

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken or plans to take in relation to the distribution to schools by Scottish Enterprise of Your World: Biotechnology & You which is sponsored by pro-GM organisations including Monsanto.

Ms Wendy Alexander: I understand that the distribution of Your World: Biotechnology & You on a pilot basis was arranged by Scottish Enterprise after discussion with Learning and Teaching Scotland (the umbrella organisation for the Higher Still Development Unit) and Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education. Discussions are under way to determine whether the continued distribution would be useful to Scottish Students.

  The Biotechnology Institute, the American organisation which publishes Your World, is currently funded by contributions from foundations and non-profit making organisations, corporate grants and teacher subscriptions. In general no donor contributes more than 5% of the total funding of the institute. I understand the financial contributors to the institute do not have a role in reviewing, editing or approving the Your World issues.

Education

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many secondary school (a) pupils and (b) staff in (i) Stirling, (ii) Clackmannanshire, (iii) Fife and (iv) Perth and Kinross have e-mail addresses at school.

Nicol Stephen: Numbers of secondary school e-mail addresses are shown in the following table. The figures relate to the position nearly a year ago, and recent contacts with the four education authorities indicate that considerable progress has been made since then.

  


Authority 
  

Pupils 
  

Teachers 
  



Stirling 
  

930 (16.2%) 
  

136 (30.4%) 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

1,040 (33.8%) 
  

104 (42.8%) 
  



Fife 
  

1,860 (8.0%) 
  

365 (20.1%) 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

4,567 (59.0%) 
  

349 (54.4%) 
  



  Source: SEED Schools Census September 2000.

Emergency Services

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many silent 999 calls from mobile phones the emergency services have received in each of the last three years, broken down by police force area.

Mr Jim Wallace: The information requested is not held centrally.

Emergency Services

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to tackle the problems associated with silent 999 calls from mobile phones.

Mr Jim Wallace: Arrangements to filter out "silent" emergency calls originating from mobile phones have been in place across the United Kingdom for about a year. Set procedures are applied to determine whether a "silent" call is inadvertent. Calls will continue to be connected to the police where there is any indication that assistance is required.

Employment

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the level of manufacturing employment was in each quarter since 1979.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The number of employee jobs in manufacturing in Scotland since 1981 are given in the following table:

  (Not seasonally adjusted)

  


Year 
  

Quarter 
  

Employee Jobs
(in thousands) 
  

Year 
  

Quarter 
  

Employee Jobs
(in thousands) 
  



1981 
  

September 
  

479 
  

1991 
  

September 
  

360 
  



 


December 
  

474 
  

 


December 
  

354 
  



1982 
  

March 
  

463 
  

1992 
  

March 
  

350 
  



 


June 
  

455 
  

 


June 
  

346 
  


 

September 
  

448 
  
 

September 
  

338 
  


 

December 
  

439 
  
 

December 
  

327 
  



1983 
  

March 
  

429 
  

1993 
  

March 
  

323 
  


 

June 
  

423 
  
 

June 
  

326 
  


 

September 
  

421 
  
 

September 
  

322 
  


 

December 
  

416 
  
 

December 
  

320 
  



1984 
  

March 
  

412 
  

1994 
  

March 
  

310 
  


 

June 
  

413 
  
 

June 
  

317 
  


 

September 
  

413 
  
 

September 
  

320 
  


 

December 
  

414 
  
 

December 
  

320 
  



1985 
  

March 
  

412 
  

1995 
  

March 
  

316 
  


 

June 
  

412 
  
 

June 
  

322 
  


 

September 
  

412 
  
 

September 
  

321 
  


 

December 
  

407 
  
 

December 
  

321 
  



1986 
  

March 
  

401 
  

1996 
  

March 
  

316 
  


 

June 
  

396 
  
 

June 
  

316 
  


 

September 
  

396 
  
 

September 
  

318 
  


 

December 
  

392 
  
 

December 
  

305 
  



1987 
  

March 
  

386 
  

1997 
  

March 
  

308 
  


 

June 
  

388 
  
 

June 
  

315 
  


 

September 
  

388 
  
 

September 
  

317 
  


 

December 
  

388 
  
 

December 
  

321 
  



1988 
  

March 
  

387 
  

1998 
  

March 
  

321 
  


 

June 
  

387 
  
 

June 
  

317 
  


 

September 
  

393 
  
 

September 
  

315 
  


 

December 
  

395 
  
 

December 
  

325 
  



1989 
  

March 
  

393 
  

1999 
  

March 
  

317 
  


 

June 
  

383 
  
 

June 
  

315 
  


 

September 
  

383 
  
 

September 
  

315 
  


 

December 
  

382 
  
 

December 
  

313 
  



1990 
  

March 
  

376 
  

2000 
  

March 
  

308 
  


 

June 
  

376 
  
 

June 
  

307 
  


 

September 
  

382 
  
 

September 
  

307 
  


 

December 
  

378 
  
 

December 
  

307 
  



1991 
  

March 
  

367 
  

2001 
  

March 
  

300 
  


 

June 
  

360 
  
 
 
 



  Source: Office for National Statistics, employee jobs series.

Employment

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what revisions to the method of collecting or reporting manufacturing employment levels have taken place since 1997 and what impact any such revisions have had on the levels of employment reported.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Estimates of employee jobs in Scotland are produced by the Office for National Statistics from their Annual Business Inquiry (ABI). This survey has run from December 1998, replacing the Annual Employment Survey (AES) which last ran in September 1998.

  The AES estimates for Scotland were compiled by aggregating site level values, whether collected directly through the survey or estimated, for all workplaces in Scotland. The improved methodology developed for the ABI survey collects information from head offices and estimates are made for Scotland using imputation and modelling routines. More information on the differences between AES and ABI is given in "The launch of the Annual Business Inquiry" which was published in the May 2001 edition of Labour Market Trends.

  The change to ABI in 1998 resulted in a rise of about 110,000 employee jobs in Scotland but only a small number of these (about 8,500) were in the manufacturing sector. In the final results of the AES, the number of employees in manufacturing in Scotland was 316,000, 15.6% of Scotland’s total employees. In the first results of the ABI the figure was 325,000, 15.2% of the Scotland total.

Environment

Dr Sylvia Jackson (Stirling) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are in place to minimise public exposure to endocrine disrupters and other dioxins.

Rhona Brankin: The Scottish Executive recognises the seriousness of the impact of endocrine disrupters and dioxins on human health. The risk of direct exposure through air, water and soil is very limited, and the majority of human exposures to dioxins arise through the consumption of food. Measures are therefore in place to limit the amount of dioxins reaching the food chain.

  Pollution control legislation, including the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Municipal Waste Incinerators Directives, which came into force in the UK in December 1996 has greatly reduced emissions of dioxins and other endocrine disrupting chemicals in the UK. The provisions of the new Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2000 will continue this trend.

  The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) include conditions within Consents to Discharge under the Control of Pollution Act 1974 that limit discharges of certain endocrine disrupting compounds into the aquatic environment.

  The Food Standards Agency (FSA) oversees the implementation of guidelines on tolerable intakes of dioxins for the UK. The FSA has a programme of research and surveillance, including endocrine disrupters, that seeks to ensure that consumers are protected, and has represented the UK in European discussions on European Commission proposals to introduce stricter community-wide limits on dioxin concentrations in foodstuffs and animal feed. The agency is also seeking the advice of the Committee on Toxicology (COT) on the safety of dioxins in foodstuffs, and will use this advice in the further development of policy.

  Scottish drinking water comes from upland or groundwater free from sources of endocrine disrupting chemicals or dioxins. Safeguards against subsequent contamination of drinking water by materials used in the treatment or distribution of water are included in the Water Supply (Water Quality) (Scotland) Regulations 1990. These require that all relevant chemicals or materials are approved by the Scottish ministers on the recommendation of the (UK) Committee on Products and Processes for use in Public Water Supply.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received from the Road Haulage Association regarding compensation in connection with the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, what interim response it has given to any such representations and when it expects to issue a definitive response.

Ross Finnie: Scottish Executive officials have twice met with representatives of the Road Haulage Association (RHA) since the outbreak of the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) crisis; the last occasion being on 11 June when the RHA submitted detailed evidence in support of hauliers’ potential compensation claims as a result of lost business due to FMD.

  Receipt of this detailed evidence has been acknowledged pending the Executive being in a position to issue a definitive response.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made to date by the ministerial sub-committee set up to examine the impact of the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak and address the issues arising; when the sub-committee expects to announce definitive and comprehensive policy and resource decisions in connection with all outstanding compensation and market support issues, and what recommendations the sub-committee will make in relation to compensation payments for the livestock haulage sector.

Ross Finnie: The Ministerial Committee on Rural Development Sub-Group on Impacts of Foot-and-Mouth Disease has met on a regular basis over the past few months to review progress of the impact assessment work and to discuss action required to relieve immediate hardship and to begin the process of recovery. Since the establishment of the sub-group, measures amounting to over £30 million have been announced, including additional resources for the Enterprise Networks to provide help to businesses affected by the foot-and-mouth disease crisis.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the remarks made by the Minister for Environment and Rural Development regarding market collapse in industries affected by the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak at the meeting of the Transport and Environment Committee on 9 May 2001 (Official Report, col. 1795), what strategies have been formulated to stimulate urgently markets affected in this way.

Ross Finnie: The most important step in tackling the effects of foot-and-mouth disease was to eradicate the disease as quickly as possible so that recovery measures could be introduced. The last reported case in Scotland was on 30 May, since when we have been able to remove most of the restrictions on access to the countryside for the benefit of tourism and have removed constraints on the movement of livestock as far as it is prudent to so do. We have also permitted a limited resumption of livestock markets from 20 August, with a more general re-opening of markets planned from 1 September. This will benefit many farmers and related businesses such as haulage companies. The European Commission has agreed to our proposals for a private storage aid scheme for UK sheepmeat which will help to remove some of the anticipated surplus from the market later in the year. I am also pressing the case for the early resumption of exports of meat and livestock from Scotland which would represent a further important step in the recovery process. Businesses affected by the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak are also benefiting from the £30 million of financial support which we have announced over the past few months.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what testing has been carried out on the deer population since the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.

Ross Finnie: No blood tests have been carried out on the deer population in Scotland. However, following reports from the public concerned about deer showing symptoms of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) a small number (figures not available) have been inspected by veterinary officers and none have been found to have FMD.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there have been any reports of the foot-and-mouth virus in the deer population since February 2001.

Ross Finnie: There have been no confirmed cases of foot-and-mouth disease in deer. A small number (figures not available) of deer with suspected symptoms were reported by the public. However, all cases were resolved locally and proved to be negative by veterinary inspection.

Health

Mr Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers when approving new drugs or treatments for use by the NHSiS (a) how much demand there will be within each health board area for such drugs and treatment and (b) what additional resources would be required to meet that demand.

Susan Deacon: When a medicine receives a UK marketing authorisation, either from the Medicines Control Agency or the European Medicines Evaluation Authority, it becomes prescribable on the NHS unless it is added to Schedule 10, or in certain circumstances, Schedule 11 to the NHS (General Medical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1995.

  Health boards determine their prescribing policy on new medicines, taking into account local needs and advice from their Area Drugs and Therapeutic Committee (AD&TC). A Scottish Medicines Consortium will be established this autumn to support AD&TCs by providing a single Scottish evaluation of new medicines at or near the time of marketing. In addition, some new medicines will be evaluated by the Health Technology Board for Scotland. The advice of the National Institute of Clinical Excellence is also made available publicly.

  Health boards’ unified budgets include provision for the cost of prescribed medicines and are set to allow for the introduction of new medicines and the greater use of existing therapies. As these funds form part of their unified budget, health boards have the flexibility to decide locally how to use them. It is for health boards and Trusts to agree the amount to be set aside for new medicines or treatments.

Health

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to improve co-operation and the co-ordination of resources and strategies between local government and the NHS.

Susan Deacon: Effective joint working between the NHSScotland, local authorities and other agencies is central to the Scottish Executive’s Health and Community Care policies.

  Our National Health: A plan for action, a plan for change (December 2000), Rebuilding our National Health Service (May 2001), Modernising Community Care (1998), the Report of the Joint Future Group (December 2000) and the Learning Disability Review (June 2001) all set out a number of steps being taken to develop joint working with local government.

  The Executive has also recently consulted on proposals to remove legislative barriers to joint working, which we will introduce soon after Parliament resumes. We will issue guidance on joint resourcing and joint service management, initially covering services for older people, in the autumn, and work with agencies over the coming months on developing single shared assessment of people with community care needs, both to come into effect in April 2002.

Land Reform (Scotland) Bill

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12456 by Mr Jim Wallace on 12 February, what the current timetable is for the introduction of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill following its consultation on the draft bill and when any amended version of the draft bill will be available for public scrutiny.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive remains committed to introducing the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill to the Scottish Parliament at the earliest opportunity. Over 3,500 responses were received during the extended consultation period for the draft Bill and Draft Scottish Outdoor Access Code. Copies are available at the Parliament’s reference centre and at the Executive’s library at Saughton House, Broomhouse Drive, Edinburgh.

  The First Minister will be making a statement to Parliament on the legislative programme for the forthcoming year.

Land Reform (Scotland) Bill

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to any potential for the liability of land managers to increase as a result of the access rights proposed in the draft Land Reform (Scotland) Bill and whether it has any plans to review the provisions of the Occupier Liability (Scotland) Act 1960 in the light of this.

Mr Jim Wallace: It is not our intention that the liability of landowners in respect of those visiting their land should increase as a result of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill. Our present view is that the existing law in respect of occupiers’ liability, in particular the Occupiers’ Liability (Scotland) Act 1960, will still be appropriate to cover the position after the Bill is in force. However, we are giving further careful consideration to that aspect of the Bill in the light of the recent consultation exercise.

Modern Apprenticeships

Mike Watson (Glasgow Cathcart) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what monitoring is in place to record how many older people have embarked on modern apprenticeships following the removal of the age restriction and what measures are in place to encourage older people to do so.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) for over 25s will be monitored through Scottish Enterprise’s Corporate Training System. Scottish Enterprise is piloting MAs for this group across a range of occupational sectors: about 1,200 apprentices are expected to be involved in the pilot projects.

NHS Waiting Times

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for an ultrasound examination in each acute NHS Trust.

Susan Deacon: The information requested is not held centrally.

National Lottery Funding

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made, or plans to make, to Her Majesty’s Government regarding the percentage of lottery money allocated to Scotland and how and where it is distributed.

Allan Wilson: The allocation of resources between Scotland and other parts of the United Kingdom is a reserved matter. Scottish ministers provide policy direction as required to distributing bodies for the distribution of National Lottery funds in Scotland.

National Lottery Funding

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether all lottery money allocated from the New Opportunities Fund through public bodies in Scotland for good causes is being distributed for the purposes intended and not being held in reserve by the public body responsible or used to supplement resources for Executive-funded programmes.

Allan Wilson: All funds distributed by the New Opportunities Fund in Scotland are subject to scrutiny by the National Audit Office and are strictly monitored and controlled in accordance with its accountability requirements. These funds are exclusively distributed in support of programmes that are additional to other sources of funding.

Prescription Charges

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12080 by Susan Deacon on 30 January 2001, how much revenue was raised in 2000-01 from NHS prescriptions charges and is estimated to be raised in 2001-02.

Susan Deacon: The revenue raised from prescription charges in Scotland in 2000-01 is likely to be £43.4 million; this figure is provisional pending finalisation of the NHS Trust annual accounts. The estimate of revenue to be raised in 2001-02 is £45.7 million.

Rail Services

Colin Campbell (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether light rapid transit schemes can share track with normal rolling stock.

Sarah Boyack: It is possible for light rapid transit schemes to share track with heavy rail traffic. However, any proposal for track-sharing would require approval from Her Majesty’s Railway Inspectorate.

Roads

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what stage the proposal to construct an underpass at the Sheriffhall roundabout on the A720 Edinburgh city bypass is at and what its policy is in respect of this.

Sarah Boyack: The Executive has no plans to construct an underpass at the Sheriffhall roundabout.

Rural Transport

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive which petrol stations in (a) Stirling, (b) Clackmannanshire, (c) Fife and (d) Perth and Kinross have successfully applied for assistance under the Rural Petrol Stations Grant Scheme.

Sarah Boyack: No petrol stations in these areas have applied for assistance under the scheme.

Sexual Offences

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to introduce mandatory training for all criminal justice personnel to raise awareness of the impact of sexual violence on women and girls.

Mr Jim Wallace: Victim awareness is a matter of general concern to the Scottish criminal justice system and is being pursued through the Scottish Strategy for Victims. The Scottish Police College provides training programmes to help the police meet the needs of victims of sex offences and forces have their own procedures. All probationer police officers are given training in dealing with the victims of sex offence cases. All Procurators Fiscal receive training on child sexual abuse, domestic violence and victims issues generally as part of their core introductory training. Further specialist training is regularly available. In addition, the independent Judicial Studies Committee is preparing written guidance for sheriffs and judges which is to be issued in a few months time.

Sheltered Housing

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance it will give to Glasgow City Council to ensure it has enough sheltered and supported accommodation for elderly people, people with special needs and people with mental health problems.

Jackie Baillie: In 2001-02 Glasgow City Council will have an estimated £75 million to spend on its housing stock. It is for the council to prioritise its housing needs and allocate this funding accordingly. However, Glasgow, like all councils, will be expected to address the issues raised in the question in its new local housing strategy.

Skye Bridge

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12509 by Sarah Boyack on 17 May 2001, whether the discussions with Skye Bridge Ltd have now taken place and, if so, what the outcome was.

Sarah Boyack: These discussions have not yet taken place. As stated in the response to question S1W-12509, the issue will be raised when we next negotiate with Skye Bridge Ltd on matters affecting the concession.

Social Justice

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it intends to publish its Social Economy Review and whether its publication has been delayed.

Jackie Baillie: Scoping work for a review of the social economy is under way. The review itself will commence soon and I expect to publish a report by the end of the year.

Social Justice

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many applications under the Scottish Community Investment Fund have been made to date and how much funding has been (a) raised since the fund was launched, (b) allocated to projects and (c) spent on projects.

Jackie Baillie: We announced plans for a loan fund in November 1999. A small development team was established with three members of staff seconded from the Bank of Scotland and Scottish Enterprise to take work forward. The team have recently successfully concluded negotiations with the banks over the terms of the loan finance and Social Investment Scotland will be officially launched on 19 September 2001.

Special Educational Needs

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-16215 by Nicol Stephen on 19 June 2001, what representations, other than formal representations, it has received from local authorities regarding any difficulties they have in meeting the costs of placing children in (a) grant-aided and (b) independent schools.

Nicol Stephen: We have received no representations from any local authority regarding difficulties in meeting these costs. In this context, the cost of residential special school fees has been mentioned as a significant commitment but not in the context of any particular difficulties in meeting the costs of placing children.

Special Educational Needs

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated annual cost of implementing the SIGN 52 guideline in full will be (a) in total and (b) per individual diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Malcolm Chisholm: These costs cannot be calculated with any degree of accuracy. A wide range of professionals are involved currently in the treatment of ADHD, and no assessment can be made of how many will need additional training or what their individual needs will be.

Tobacco Advertising

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Her Majesty’s Government since 7 June 2001 regarding a Bill to ban tobacco advertising and promotion.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive has made clear our disappointment that such a Bill was not included in the Queen’s Speech. We have been in regular contact with her Majesty’s Government since 7 June to press them to bring forward the Bill to ban tobacco advertising and promotion at the earliest possible date.

Tobacco Advertising

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what alternative measures it plans to introduce in the absence on a ban on tobacco advertising and promotion.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive remains committed to achieving a ban on tobacco advertising and promotion. We recognise, however, that such a ban is just one element of a wide range of measures that together, will help reduce the incidence and impact of smoking. The Scottish Executive is continuing to take forward action to implement the 1998 White Paper Smoking Kills and is working with a range of organisations to make progress on several fronts:

  NRT and Zyban are now available on prescription.

  Additional funding to improve and expand smoking cessation services and health education.

  A Scottish Voluntary Charter for the introduction of non-smoking areas in public places.

  The Lord Advocate is currently undertaking a review of test purchasing policy, linked to enforcement procedures for a range of age-restricted goods including tobacco.

  The Scottish Executive is working with the UK Government in taking forward the implementation of the recent EU Directive on additives and labelling of tobacco.

Tobacco Advertising

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what impact a ban on tobacco advertising and promotion will have on levels of (a) tobacco consumption and (b) morbidity and (c) the number of preventable premature deaths per year.

Susan Deacon: Reducing the incidence and impact of smoking requires action on a number of fronts. The UK Government estimates that a ban on tobacco advertising and promotion might lead eventually to a 2.5% reduction in the number of smokers. If this was achieved in Scotland it could lead to an annual reduction of some 830 hospital admissions. It could also save around 150 lives in the short term, building to 300 lives each year.

Tobacco Advertising

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action can be taken to protect young people from tobacco advertising given the evidence that tobacco marketing may assist in the recruitment of new smokers, the retention of smokers and the prevention of smokers quitting.

Susan Deacon: The Executive is taking forward a range of measures to reduce smoking levels and the appeal of smoking among young people.

  These include health education and promotion of a holistic approach to healthy lifestyles, for example the "Confidence to Learn" training package being developed by HEBS for primary school teachers in order to help younger children to develop decision-making skills and the ability to cope with peer pressure. In addition "Young Scot" have produced a pack aimed at teenagers to encourage healthy lifestyles including advice on smoking.

  HEBS has undertaken mass media advertising, including the highly acclaimed STINX advertisement, aimed at teenagers, which promotes the message that smoking is neither healthy nor "cool". The new "Aliens" advert and competition, which was launched on 16 August, continues the anti-smoking drive.

  Other measures to reduce smoking among young people, including a major education drive, are being developed, backed by additional investment from the Health Improvement Fund.

Vaccines

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) vaccine contains thiomersal.

Susan Deacon: I refer to my answer to questions S1W-14694 and S1W-15962 on 22 June 2001.

Voluntary Sector

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding is provided to the voluntary sector in the current financial year by (a) the Scottish Executive including its agencies and non-departmental public bodies, (b) local authorities and (c) the NHS, broken down into (i) time-limited project funding, (ii) core funding for administration costs, (iii) contracted funding for commissioned services and (iv) other funding.

Angus MacKay: The information pertaining to direct support of the voluntary sector by the Executive in 2000-01 is currently being compiled. An announcement by the Minister for Social Justice is imminent. The funding provided by non-departmental public bodies, the NHS and local government analysed as requested is not held centrally and would involve a trawl of all local authorities, NHS Boards and Trust Hospitals, etc. The provision of these figures would involve a disproportionate cost.

Water Authorities

David McLetchie (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what investigations it has made or plans to make into the circumstances surrounding the early retirement of the former chief executive of West of Scotland Water Authority, Mr Ernie Chambers, and in particular into the severance payment made to him.

Ross Finnie: Mr Chambers took early retirement as part of a restructuring at WoSWA which reduced the number of directors. He received standard early release terms. There are therefore no grounds for an investigation.

Water Authorities

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what monitoring it undertakes to ensure that the water authorities secure best value in their public works contracts.

Ross Finnie: The authorities are expected to take their decisions on expenditure with due regard to the principles of government accounting concerning the regularity, propriety and economy, efficiency and effectiveness of their proposals. Given the number of projects undertaken at any one time by the authorities, it would not be appropriate for the Executive to monitor each of these on an individual basis. Projects exceeding the delegated authority are required to be submitted to the Executive for approval.

Water Authorities

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it has issued to the water authorities to ensure that best value is obtained in their public works contracts.

Ross Finnie: Guidance to ensure that best value is obtained in contracts has been issued to the three water authorities. It is issued in the context of the Financial and Management Memorandum and Scottish Executive Finance Guidance notes. This guidance is reviewed periodically.

Water Authorities

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what monitoring it undertakes of different public works contract procedures used by the water authorities; what plans it has to review these procedures to ensure best practice, and whether it will issue guidance to introduce common practices across the authorities.

Ross Finnie: As I mentioned in my answers to questions S1W-17483 and S1W-17484, water authorities are expected to take their decisions on expenditure with due regard to the principles of government accounting concerning the regularity, propriety and economy, efficiency and effectiveness of their proposals. It is for the water authorities to establish the best means of securing this.

Water Authorities

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to issue guidance to the proposed new single water authority on public works contracting procedures.

Ross Finnie: Guidance is currently being prepared for Scottish Water. It will include, amongst other subjects that establish how the new authority will be run, guidance to ensure that decisions on expenditure are taken with due regard to the principles of government accounting concerning the regularity, propriety and economy, efficiency and effectiveness of the proposals.